Eric Walten (1663–1697) was a Dutch

Enlightenment Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to: Age of Enlightenment * Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...

thinker and pamphleteer, notably accused of

blasphemy Blasphemy refers to an insult that shows contempt, disrespect or lack of Reverence (emotion), reverence concerning a deity, an object considered sacred, or something considered Sanctity of life, inviolable. Some religions, especially Abrahamic o ...

and of secretly following the philosophical thinking of Benedict Spinoza in the 1690s. Little information survives of Walten's life. He told the court that he was born in

Ham Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in '' Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term '' ...

, Munsterland, now in Germany. The Dutch scholar Wiep van Bunge suggests that Walten may have been of English descent. He lived in

Utrecht Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...

until 1685, and from 1688 in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

and

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...

.Bunge, Wiep van (1996). "Eric Walten (1663-1697): An Early Enlightenment Radical in the Dutch Republic". In Wiep van Bunge and (Eds.), ''Disguised and Overt Spinozism Around 1700: Papers Presented at the International Colloquium, Held at Rotterdam, 5–8 October 1994'' (pp. 41-54). Leiden, New York, and Köln: BRILL. . Though influenced by

writers such as Descartes and

Spinoza Baruch (de) Spinoza (24 November 163221 February 1677), also known under his Latinized pen name Benedictus de Spinoza, was a philosopher of Portuguese-Jewish origin, who was born in the Dutch Republic. A forerunner of the Age of Enlightenmen ...

in his philosophical thought, Walten denied the latter as his primary political influence and professed to admire

Juan de Mariana Juan de Mariana (2 April 1536 – 17 February 1624), was a Spanish Jesuit priest, Scholastic, historian, and member of the Monarchomachs. Life Juan de Mariana was born in Talavera, Kingdom of Toledo. He studied at the Complutense University ...

as the greatest writer on the powers and responsibilities of kings. He was one of the most ardent defenders of the

Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution, also known as the Revolution of 1688, was the deposition of James II and VII, James II and VII in November 1688. He was replaced by his daughter Mary II, Mary II and her Dutch husband, William III of Orange ...

, justifying the expedition of William III of England, William of Orange to England in many pamphlets.Gelderen, Martin van (2007). "In Defense of William III: Eric Walten and the Glorious Revolution". In Esther Mijers and David Onnekink (Eds.), ''Redefining William III: The Impact of the King-Stadholder in International Context'' (pp. 143-158). London: Ashgate. . Walten's fate as a controversialist was sealed when his vigorous defense of Balthasar Bekker against the various accusations against him invited a legal prosecution on blasphemy charges against himself. Most damagingly, he had called the Synod#Reformed, Reformed Synod a lunatic asylum ('Een Sothuys van de gekken') for its attack against Bekker. Walten died in prison, probably by suicide, while awaiting trial. According to the historicians Margaret Jacob, Wiep van Bunge, and Silvia Berti, Walten belonged to a partly clandestine group of Holland Enlightment philosophers that were strongly influenced by Adrian Koerbagh and Lodewijk Meyer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walten, Eric 1663 births 1697 deaths 17th-century Dutch philosophers Dutch people who died in prison custody People charged with blasphemy People from Hamm Spinozists